Imphal, May 24 : Enacted on 11 September 1958 by an Act of Parliament to tackle the Naga insurgency, the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA)
gives sweeping powers to security forces empowering them to arrest
without a warrant or kill someone on suspicion without fear of
prosecution.

As this draconian law completed 55 years on 22 May 2013, the debate
on its purpose still rages on and the states under it continue to bear
the brunt of its effects.

Enforced in the entire North East barring Sikkim for decades now,
this tough legislation has particularly affected the state of Manipur.

The debate over AFSPA
came to the fore when a 32-year-old Manipuri woman Manorama was picked
up by Assam Rifles soldiers in 2004 and brutally raped and murdered. The
protests that followed sends chills down the spine.

In July that year, a group of 12 women disrobed themselves in front
of the Assam Rifles headquarters at Kangla Fort in Imphal and protested
naked against the rape and murder of Manorama by the custodians of the
law.

This April, Rashida Manjoo, the UN envoy on Violence Against Women
listened to a group of 40 women, including the mother of Manorama Devi.

However, Manorama’s brother Dolendro sounded pessimistic.

“This won’t help us. There was even the Jeevan Reddy report. The government will do what it wants to do,” he said.

The Jeevan Reddy Commission was set up following massive protests in
Manipur over the rape and murder in custody. The panel was asked to
review the Act and advise the government whether amendments were needed
to protect human rights under the Act or replace it with a new humane
one. It submitted its report to the government on 6 June 2005.

Former Apunba Lup president Lokendra Arambam felt that democracy is harmed when such black law exists.

“I don’t find any instances of liberal democracy when you live in a
world of violence, the world of repression and obsession with a
particular act,” he said.

The Justice Verma Commission had also suggested the immediate need to
look into the continuance of AFSPA. Manipur’s Iron Lady Irom Sharmila
has been on a humger strike since 2 November 2000 demanding the
withdrawal of AFSPA from the state.

However, the government is unwilling either to repeal or soften AFSPA.

The law was also enforced in Jammu and Kashmir as The Armed Forces (Jammu and Kashmir) Special Powers Act, 1990 in July 1990.